The Expat Doctor

“Hi, is that Vikram?” she asked as she entered the Coffee house and saw the handsome, lone young man seated next to the window.

He stood up and shook hands with her, as he gave her one of his shy, yet charming smiles.

“You must be Parul. Nice to meet you.”

Parul – Dr.Parul Joshi was here on a blind date – a date set up for her by her parents. She was here to meet Vikram Hooda, a young engineer who had been introduced to her parents through their network. Parul’s parents were interested in making Vikram part of their family – by getting Parul married to him. However Parul was totally uninterested in marriage, so she had decided to meet Vikram and end it all before it started.

But as she shook hands with the tall, well-built, handsome young man she subconsciously changed her mind. She sat down and they began their very first conversation.

Vikram was soft-spoken and polite, irrespective of all his achievements. He was also an excellent listener. They talked – actually Parul talked for hours, and he actively listened to her. She told him about her childhood, her college and her medical studies.

She had completed her Bachelors in Medicine and Surgery (MBBS) from a top Medical school in India. She had recently started working with a hospital in Bangalore, and was thoroughly enjoying her work. She loved and truly believed in her profession, and dreamt of being of great service to mankind in future.

Before they realized, it was past dinner time. Parul had never before felt so free and talkative. There was something about Vikram that made her talk and open up. Something about his smile made her forget the world. She was clearly falling in love with him! When she entered the coffee house, it was with the intention of ending the dialogue before it started, but at the end of the two hours, she felt as if she could go on talking with this man forever!

And her wish came true – in the next six months Parul and Vikram were married in a grand wedding ceremony in Bangalore.

After marriage Parul continued to work with the hospital for several months. Vikram worked for a large engineering company – he was well known in the company for his intelligence and his great attitude. His work was well rewarded and soon he was promoted to higher ranks. With his promotion came additional responsibility and opportunity. His company offered him an Expat opportunity to move to Germany for three years.

He came home with the great news.

“Would you like to go on an extended holiday to Germany?” he asked Parul.

“What do you mean?”

“I have been offered an Expat deal to go to Germany for three years. I can take it if we want.”

“Three years? That’s a bit long. What does this deal mean to us?”

“Well, it is an expat deal – so, we will have a luxurious life – in addition to a solid pay package, we will have a fully furnished and fully paid-for house, we will have a car, when we have kids their school fees will be paid too, we will have domestic help, first class air travel, paid holidays, free air tickets for our families. The list goes on. Honestly, to me it sounds like a great deal. There are at least six people on my team who would die for this deal. But I will totally understand if you want me to decline.”

It all seemed too good to be true. Parul had heard about Expats in the past. She had an uncle who had been an expat in Malaysia with his family. She had seen their lifestyle and had been quite impressed by the same. They had everything she could dream of! A bungalow, a luxury car and exotic holidays! She had seen some of their pictures at fancy restaurants, ski resorts, five star hotels. Their children went to international private schools, and their education was all sponsored by the company. The family had a nanny, a driver, a cook, a cleaner – a lifestyle only few could imagine to have.

Wouldn’t she like to have all that? Perhaps yes, but then, what would she do in Germany for three years? She was a qualified doctor, could she practice medicine there? Well, visa restrictions on expat families do not allow them to work. So only Vikram would continue to work and she would have to stay back home – with all the riches & luxuries that the expat deal promised, it would indeed become a rather extended holiday!

She thought about it for a long time – financially it made a lot of sense. It would be a great experience for Vikram professionally. From her own perspective, having an international, expat life for a couple of years would not necessarily hurt – yes it would mean she would take a break from her hospital for three years, but would that make her an obsolete doctor? - probably not. So she decided to say yes.

“Let’s do it Vikram. It will be an adventure. And, I wouldn’t really mind taking that extended holiday you talked about.”

Within the next two months they were on a flight to Frankfurt. Their exciting expat life in Frankfurt had now begun. They were delighted to land in this beautiful, enchanting city that was not only an industrial & financial powerhouse, but also a culturally rich destination. Parul knew from her research that Frankfurt was one of the most preferred expat destinations in the world – the standard of living there was great with sound housing, excellent public transport, non-existent crime, low unemployment and superb international expat schools. Both Parul and Vikram were happy and thankful to have had such an opportunity.

The first few days were spent settling down. The company had provided them with a large, posh apartment that was not far away from the city center. The apartment was in a relatively quiet part of the city that was largely inhabited by expats with families. They spent the week furnishing the place, and getting to know the neighborhood. Their immediate neighbors were expat families too – one from Argentina and another from Italy. They received a warm welcome from these new friends, as they gradually settled into the new place.

Weekends were spent exploring the beautiful city, and the surrounding regions. The Imperial cathedral, St Paul’s church, all the medieval buildings, the opera house, museums – they visited each and every tourist attraction and spent hours admiring the beauty of the city every weekend. They also travelled around, exploring places outside Frankfurt, and outside Germany too. A romantic vacation in Paris, a weekend in Brussels, A holiday in Rome, An adventure in Amsterdam, A historical tour of Athens – they visited every exotic destination in Europe over the following few months.

Weekdays typically were quite busy. Unsurprisingly, Vikram would remain busy at work from Monday to Friday. But surprisingly, Parul would also remain busy from Monday to Friday! When they had started planning their move to Frankfurt, they had feared that Parul would get terribly bored of doing nothing. However, life here was not boring at all! Parul had become a member of the Expat wives club. She had made a number of expat friends there. These were all highly sophisticated and educated women from all over the world.

While their spouses went to work, they often planned their own activities together – visit to a spa, tour of a museum, movie evening, a shopping day on the Zeil or Goethestraße  – which is where one would find the highly classy, designer shops. Parul had slowly, but surely developed significant interest in designer brands.

All in all – life was great for Parul and Vikram. A year passed, and they did not realize how fast time had flown away. Amidst all the enjoyment and holidaying Parul realized that she was pregnant. Both of them were delighted to get the news, and spent the following few months preparing their lavish apartment for the baby’s arrival. They bought an expensive crib, a pram, a car seat, baby clothing, toys.  Parul’s expat friends threw her a very fancy baby shower too!

Finally the little girl Leila arrived. Parul’s parents visited to meet their granddaughter. They were immensely pleased to see how happy their daughter was – what a life style she had! They were very proud and content as they returned back home.

With the little baby, came a nanny who helped Parul. She also took great care of the baby when Parul was busy with a kitty party or another ladies event. This was not very frequent, but Parul did take a break from the baby atleast once a week.

Time continued to fly as she enjoyed her extended holiday. Soon the three years were over. One day Vikram came back home from work and asked Parul if she was ready to go back.

“What do you mean go back? Can we not stay a bit longer? Can your contract be extended another term?” she asked.

“Well, I can get the contract extended by three more years, but I thought you wanted to go back.”

“Not really Vikram. We are happy, aren’t we? And little Leila will have a great school here if we stayed back. She will start school this September.”

Vikram agreed and they continued their expat life in Frankfurt.

Their daughter grew up and started school – the international school that taught English and German. They were very proud of their girl as she was trilingual – she spoke Hindi, English and German. Parul continued to make several new friends at school – the mothers of other kids.

Years continued to pass, and it was Leila’s fifth birthday. That afternoon, she had to be taken to her pediatrician for her vaccinations. Leila was a surprisingly brave child when it came to doctors and injections. She was not nervous at all, as Dr. Davis inserted the needle into the little arm. Dr. Davis was a kindhearted, warm woman. After the injection she gave Leila a little lollipop. The little one was super-excited as she took her reward from Dr. Davis.

After the doctor visit, the family of three started driving back home. Leila was on her car seat, and was in a deep thought. Parul wondered what she was thinking.

“What are you thinking of baby?”

“Thinking of the doctor, mumma.”

“What about the doctor, dear?”

“I like the doctor. Why are you not a doctor mumma? You know, I want to be a doctor just like her.”

For several seconds Parul went completely blank. Her daughter had asked her why she was not a doctor.

Well, somewhere on the way Parul had forgotten that she was in fact a doctor. Would her little girl believe her if she said that she was a doctor too? Would she ever say “I want to be a doctor like mumma”?

Parul remained silent. Only Vikram could hear her silence. As they got back home, she excused herself and drove away. She stopped close to a little garden, parked the car and sat down on a bench.

There was much thinking to be done. Where could she start? Could she start with that “gold medal” she had been awarded years ago for her exemplary performance at medical school? Or could she start with her dream of one day becoming a great doctor who would service mankind?

She started questioning these achievements as tears rolled down her cheeks – “Am I really a doctor? Who am I?” she asked herself.

Here in this beautiful town that she called home, she was known as “An expat wife”, “wife of Mr. Vikram Hooda”, “An expat mother”, “Mother of Leila”. Not a single person knew her as Dr.Parul.

She suddenly started feeling like a stranger in the enchanting, pretty town. She knew every corner of it, but no longer felt like she belonged here.

With a heavy heart and a mind full of unorganized thoughts she drove back home. It was her daughter’s birthday, so her little friends had all arrived. She stood in a corner and watched the children play. They were playing a game facilitated by an animator called “Be your mommy” – each child had to play his or her own mother.

A little girl came up wearing an apron – “I am mommy, the chef of the family”

Another little girl came with a handbag and a comb “I am mommy, I am lovely”

Finally it was Leila’s turn. Parul wondered what Leila would say. She looked at Vikram who smiled back approvingly. Leila came walking with a plastic stethoscope and said “I am mommy, I am a doctor”.

Parul smiled as she saw the show. Vikram walked next to her and held her quietly.

“I had forgotten that this was an extended vacation, Vikram.” She said.

“And now the vacation is over my dear, it’s time to go back to work, Doctor.” he replied.